Inspiring every child with our wonderful cosmos

Pedro Russo UNAWE/Leiden University, NL e. russo@strw.leidenuniv.nl t. @unawe | @pruss f. facebook.com/unawe

INsPIRATION

Use perspective, inspiration and fun of astronomy to: - Introduce young children to the excitement of science - Enhance their understanding of the world and

demonstrate power of rational thought - Broaden children’s minds - Stimulate world citizenship, tolerance

Universe Awareness

Astronomy-based program with social goals

Exposing disadvantaged young children (ages 4 to 10) to the inspirational aspects of astronomy

Development of UNAWE programs in 6 countries over 3 years 1. International Network

- Platform for teachers and development of professionals worldwide - Exchange of ideas, experience and materials - Coordinators and managers in each participating country, tailored to each

country/community

2. Educational Material - Games, cartoons, songs, hands-on material - Needs to be FUN and INTERACTIVE

3. Teacher Training - Give teachers the confidence to introduce astronomy and other science

topics in their classrooms - Teacher = strong multiplier

The Netherlands Germany The UK Spain Italy South-Africa

EU-UNAWE

40 Countries (6 EU-UNAWE) 500+ Educators/Teachers/Astronomers

1. Network

1. Network

• International website: www.unawe.org

Science Prize for Online Resources in Education

2. Educational material • Online resources: open-source (creative commons license) • August 2011: Science Magazine’s SPORE Science Award!

‘Deadly Moons’

Showcase of best educational resources available online

Space Scoop 2. Educational material

Regular breaking news update for children

Share with children the excitement that the latest scientific discoveries bring

Demonstrate that there is still much to learn about the Universe – research that they could contribute to in the future

Space Scoop: Collaboration with ESO, NASA Chandra, South African Astronomical Observatory, Royal Astronomical Society and Europlanet Translations in 16 Languages

2. Educational material

2. Educational material

UNIVERSE iN a BOX

Resonates with UNAWE’s mission of didactic, interdisciplinary, and

cultural content

Modular and Customizable

Low-cost Materials

Localizable with UNAWE

Network

Easy to Reproduce

2. Educational material

UNIVERSE iN a BOX

3. Teacher Training

340 hours of teacher traning in 6 countries: Number of teachers trained in 6 countries: 375 Number of children reached by teachers trained (~ numbers): 15 170

Funded by Consortium

Armagh Observatory

Part of

www.eunawe.com www.unawe.org